This invention relates to devices used for cleaning teeth, specifically to a disposable, easily portable, waterless teeth-cleaning assembly, and a method for its manufacture, comprising a diminutive toothbrush; a non-foaming saliva-activated teeth-cleaning agent and breath freshener, that is pre-applied and dried onto the toothbrush bristles; a folded and airtight sealed small moistened disposable towel for optional use after teeth cleaning; a flexible, thin-walled, airtight packaging container for sanitary storage of the toothbrush prior to use, with the packaging container being only slightly larger than the perimeter dimensions of the combined toothbrush and disposable towel package, with the front and back layers of the packaging container also being preferably heat sealed together between the toothbrush bristles and the disposable towel package to create two separated compartments within the packaging container so as to prevent contact between the disposable towel package and the pre-coated toothbrush bristles. For cost efficient manufacture and sale it is contemplated that several assemblies would be attached together during manufacture, and made readily separable from one another by a perforated or other easily separable connection for individual transport and use. Also, although the toothbrush in each packaging container could be reused multiple times, with or without newly applied dentifrice, it is contemplated for the entire assembly to be discarded after one use. Applications can include, but are not limited to, storage in a desk or cabinet for use by an office worker to conveniently clean his or her teeth after a meal without water and without having to leave the desk area, storage in the glove compartment of a motor vehicle for use by frequent business travelers or those on extended travel for pleasure to provide a convenient means for teeth cleaning and breath freshening after meals without the potential mess associated with performing such activity with the use of liquids in or around a motor vehicle, storage in a backpack or other type of school book bag for use by students not having adequate time between classes to stop in a restroom for teeth cleaning, storage in a backpack or equipment bag for waterless use by campers or hikers in areas where there is a limited availability of restroom facilities and potable water supplies, and storage in a purse or briefcase for use by any traveler conscientious about teeth cleaning and not having a conveniently available source of potable water available for the clean up necessary after teeth cleaning with the traditional foaming dentifrices and mouthwashes commonly used at home.
It is important for people to brush their teeth at least twice a day to freshen breath and lessen the risk of tooth decay. Although most people brush in the morning and/or at night, brushing in the middle of the day is also desirable, particularly after meals, as it further reduces a person""s need for fillings and more complex dental procedures. However, many find that it is too time consuming and inconvenient for them to fit mid-day teeth cleaning into their schedules, even though they know it would be beneficial to do so. While away from home and relying on the use of prior art devices, mid-day tooth brushing has heretofore involved the transport of a toothbrush, optionally a toothbrush holder, and a separate container of toothpaste, powdered dentifrice, or mouthwash into an office, school, or other public restroom, and thereafter using a source of potable water to clean the user""s mouth, toothbrush, and hands after the tooth brushing portion of the procedure is complete. Since the sinks in public restrooms often do not have adjacent countertops onto which one can securely and sanitarily place a toothbrush holder or a container of dentifrice while tooth brushing is being conducted, tooth brushing in public places has typically been a cumbersome, inconvenient, and time consuming ordeal. Although clothing pockets can be used to temporarily hold tooth brushing items, when pockets in career clothing are used, the items held should be thoroughly rinsed and wiped of excess water and residue prior to placement therein to avoid fabric damage, thus adding extra time to the tooth brushing process. Tooth brushing alternatives for a person traveling by automobile are often limited to use of a toothbrush and the application of a foaming paste or other type of foaming dentifrice in a public restroom at a restaurant, rest stop, or gas station, which can lack the minimum sanitary standard desired. In lieu of toothpaste, travelers can also carry with them a quantity of mouthwash for use in public restrooms along the highway to temporarily kill mouth germs until tooth brushing can later take place, or they can chew gum and/or eat breath mints after meals to freshen breath until a later tooth cleaning procedure with a toothbrush and foaming dentifrice can take place in a convenient and acceptably sanitary location. If tooth brushing with a foaming paste or gel and prior art apparatus were to take place at a desk or in a car, the procedure would be cumbersome, awkward, and have the potential of creating a mess. The user would have to supply a source of rinse water and a container for discarding both the rinse water and used dentifrice. If the toothbrush used was not intended to be disposable, the user would have to take into account and provide an amount of potable water for rinsing his or her mouth, as well as for rinsing the toothbrush. Folding toothbrushes, and those otherwise having enhanced portability, would make storage of tooth cleaning apparatus more convenient in a backpack, desk, or motor vehicle glove compartment, however, such devices would not lessen the time involved in accomplishing a tooth brushing procedure in a location remote from one""s home, nor would they solve the problem associated with disposal of rinse water when teeth cleaning is attempted at a desk or in a car. The rinse water disposal problems and extra time typically associated with cleaning a toothbrush after use would be eliminated by the use of a disposable toothbrush. However, use of a disposable toothbrush alone would not solve the problem of how to dispose of the discarded rinse water used to eliminate foam residue on the mouth and hands, should one attempt to brush one""s teeth at a desk or in a motor vehicle with a foaming paste, gel, or mouthwash product. The present invention solves all of the above-stated problems by making available to all travelers in a convenient, sanitary, lightweight, compact, inexpensive, durable, easy-to-transport, and easy-to-use packaging container, all of the resources needed for quick, easy, and neat waterless tooth brushing away from home. No invention is known to have all of the advantages of the present invention.
The invention thought to be the closest in concept to the present invention is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. D391,399 to Mills (1998). Both the Mills invention and the present invention provide a toothbrush and a quantity of dentifrice to help a user remove food particles from teeth that otherwise would adhere to the them, form plaque, and ultimately cause tooth decay. However, the Mills invention and the present invention also have important differences. The Mills invention is depicted as a toothbrush kit having a box with at least one end that can be opened and re-closed. The box is shorter in length than the Mills toothbrush when it is in its usable extended condition, and has a rectangular cross-sectional configuration that further indicates manufacture from paper products. The Mills toothbrush kit also has a toothbrush with a folding handle, the distal end of which can be placed behind its proximal end, and when the two ends are positioned substantially parallel to one another, the Mills toothbrush is sufficiently shortened so that it can be placed fully within the box. The Mills toothbrush kit also comprises a small, flattened packet of dentifrice and a collapsible paper cup. The cup and packet also each have a perimeter dimension allowing for easy insertion into and removal from the box. In contrast, the present invention comprises a diminutive toothbrush and a small moistened disposable towel, both stored prior for use in a sanitary, sealed, airtight, thin-walled, flexible plastic packaging unit, easily separable for independent transport from the adjacent packaging unit or units to which it is attached. In the preferred embodiment, the upper surface of each packaging unit would be substantially transparent, with the exception of information needed for product identification and differentiation. Also, the toothbrushes used in the present invention would preferably have soft white bristles, and a clear handle made from either green or blue plastic material so that the present invention has a pleasing, clean-looking appearance to encourage use. In addition to the configuration of the toothbrush and the type of packing used, another significant difference between the Mills invention and the present invention is that the present invention is intended for waterless use, while the Mills invention is not. During manufacture of the present invention, a teeth-cleaning agent is applied to and dried onto the distal end of each toothbrush bristle used. As a result, approximately two-thirds to three-fourths of each toothbrush bristle becomes pre-coated with tooth-cleaning dentifrice. It is contemplated for the teeth-cleaning agent to be non-sticky, non-foaming, and saliva activated, thereby eliminating the need for a source of potable rinse water. It is also contemplated for the dried teeth-cleaning agent to be provided in both peppermint and wintergreen flavors, with the peppermint flavor associated with the toothbrushes having blue handles and the wintergreen flavor associated with toothbrushes having green handles. Also, although not limited thereto, the same liquid used as a medium for the non-sticky teeth-cleaning agent would preferably be used to dampen the disposable towel, so that there would be no unpleasant mixing of scents, and no potential risk of a non-edible product leaking from the disposable towel package into the pre-coated toothbrush bristle compartment of a unit packaging assembly. Further, although not limited thereto, the teeth-cleaning agent could comprise a non-foaming mouthwash type of product, or a product comprising or similar to a tooth polish, the selected product also comprising a breath freshener. Once a user has completed brushing his or her teeth with the present invention, a simple wipe of the mouth with the accompanying moistened disposable towel would neatly and conveniently conclude the tooth brushing process. Since no water would be required, people could easily clean their teeth at any time and in any location convenient to them. They would not have to seek out a source of potable water or a restroom for the discrete disposal of the rinse water used to eliminate a foam residue from in and around the mouth. Manufacture of the present invention to provide joined packaging units that are easily separable from one another would reduce unit cost, and make the present invention affordable by most travelers, particularly when one considers the ever-increasing cost of dental fillings and crowns, and their long-term impact on teeth. Tooth brushing with the present invention also saves time, over use of the Mills invention, since use of the Mills invention requires the time needed to secure a source of potable water, as well as the location of an appropriate means for disposal of any rinse water used. Both the Mills invention and the present invention require the use of a solid waste receptacle. In the Mills invention, the folded cup provided appears to be a single use, disposable paper cup that would not be easily dried or refolded for storage in the same paper box in which it was packaged prior to use. Although the Mills toothbrush and package of dentifrice could be discarded, if the dentifrice is not totally exhausted during its first use, it is likely that both would be reinserted into the box for subsequent use. In contrast, it is contemplated for the entire present invention to be discarded after a single use. Also, until a proper and convenient solid waste disposal container is found, the used disposable towel, opened disposable towel package, and the used toothbrush of the present invention can be temporarily housed within the original packaging unit, or a portion of it, whereby in the interim between use and disposal, any residual teeth-cleaning agent on the toothbrush or disposable towel would be prevented from having contact with any other object. No device or method is known for waterless tooth cleaning purposes that has all of the advantages offered by the present invention.
The primary object of this invention is to provide a disposable, waterless tooth brushing assembly that can be discretely and conveniently used to remove food particles from teeth after a meal in a location where the person using it does not have ready access to a source of potable rinse water, or a container or facility for the convenient and discrete discard of used rinse water. It is also an object of this invention to provide a waterless tooth brushing assembly with components that are compact in configuration and lightweight for easy transport. A further object of this invention is to provide a waterless tooth brushing assembly in which the toothbrush is immediately available to a user for prompt tooth cleaning use. It is also an object of this invention to provide a waterless tooth brushing assembly that is fast and simple to use. It is a further object of this invention to provide a waterless tooth brushing assembly that is cost effective to manufacture and use. A further object of this invention is to provide a waterless tooth brushing assembly that comprises a toothbrush maintained in a sanitary condition prior to use. It is also an object of this invention to provide a waterless tooth brushing method that contemplates use of a teeth-cleaning agent that is non-sticky, pleasant in flavor, and non-foaming so that a rinsing step is not required. A further object of this invention is to provide a teeth-cleaning agent that also can be used to freshen breath. It is also an object of this invention to provide a waterless tooth brushing assembly in which the components can indefinitely remain in a substantially self-contained condition after use until a convenient means for solid waste disposal can be found for their discard.
As described herein, properly manufactured and used, the present invention provides a waterless tooth brushing assembly that would allow discrete and convenient use to remove food particles from teeth after a meal at an office desk, in a motor vehicle, or in any other location where the person using it does not have ready access to a source of potable rinse water, or a container for convenient discard of used rinse water. It is fast, simple, and convenient to use, since the toothbrush is initially sealed in an easily opened sanitary container. Also, its toothbrush bristles are pre-coated with a teeth-cleaning agent that is dried thereon, saliva-activated, and available for immediate use. Further, since the teeth-cleaning agent is non-sticky and non-foaming, clean up after brushing one""s teeth at a maximum would involve the use of an accompanying pre-moistened disposable towel to freshen the hands and the area immediately around the mouth, but usually only the area around the mouth. The present invention is safe to use, as its toothbrush would contain soft bristles that are maintained in a sanitary condition prior to use. Preferably, and when the teeth-cleaning agent and disposable towel moistening agent comprise different compositions, the bristle end of the toothbrush would be stored in a compartment separated from the small pre-moistened disposable towel to keep the disposable towel package from contact with the pre-applied teeth-cleaning agent on the bristles, as well as prevent interaction between the disposable towel moistening agent and the bristles if the integrity of a disposable towel package and/or unit packaging were to become inadvertently breached during transport or storage so as to allow moistening agent movement within a packaging unit. The toothbrush of the present invention is diminutive and lightweight, and the packaging unit used to house both the toothbrush and disposable towel is thin-walled, made from lightweight materials, and compact, thus allowing for convenient and efficient storage and transport prior to use. Further, since it is contemplated for the present invention to be manufactured with easily separable, initially joined, multiple packaging units, the per unit manufacturing cost would be kept low so that the present invention is cost effective to manufacture and use. Although not limited thereto, it is contemplated that at least four packaging units would be combined during manufacture for distribution purposes, with a toothbrush and pre-moistened disposable towel heat sealed into each individual packaging unit. If four packaging units were to be assembled at once, four sealed pre-moistened disposable towel packages would be spaced apart from one another and laid upon the units"" combined bottom packaging layer. Four toothbrushes would also be placed on the combined bottom packaging layer, with the non-bristle end of each positioned upon a different one of the disposable towel packages. The units"" combined top packaging layer would then be spread over all four toothbrushes and the combined bottom packaging layer, aligned with the bottom packaging layer, and after alignment the perimeter edges of both layers would be heat sealed together to create four airtight packaging units joined together in a manner providing a series of ridges, perforations, or other means or combination of means allowing easy separation therebetween, as well as easy opening by a user. Although not limited thereto, it is preferred that the heat-sealing process used for joining perimeter edges would also simultaneously create two compartments within each packaging unit, one for the pre-coated toothbrush bristles and the other for the opposing end of the toothbrush and the disposable towel package. The two layers used to form the joined packaging units would be made from a flexible thin-walled but durable material, sealed airtight to provide extended sanitary storage for the toothbrush bristles. In addition to being not easily punctured, but easily opened upon demand, the material used for each packaging unit would also maintain its integrity after opening, not easily being ripped or shredded into multiple pieces, so that the packaging unit can remain in tact for a sufficient period after toothbrush use for temporarily containing the used toothbrush and/or the used disposable towel until an appropriate waste disposal container is found for their discard. The present invention toothbrush would have a clean, fresh appearance to encourage its use, with white bristles and clear handles that are color-coded green or blue to visually indicate the flavor of teeth-cleaning agent pre-coating the bristles. The teeth-cleaning agent would also contain pleasant, breath freshening wintergreen or peppermint flavors, with the wintergreen flavor being applied to the toothbrushes having green handles and the peppermint flavor being applied to the toothbrushes having the blue handles. Also, to prevent unpleasant mixing of flavors and/or aromas, the disposable towel""s moistening agent would preferably contain the same liquid medium used in the teeth-cleaning agent applied to the toothbrush bristles, although it is also considered to be within the scope of the present invention for the disposable towel""s moistening agent and the teeth-cleaning agent to comprise different liquid media.
The description herein provides the preferred embodiments of the present invention but should not be construed as limiting the scope of the waterless tooth brushing assembly disclosed herein. For example, variations can occur in the number of bristles attached to each toothbrush handle; the length of each toothbrush bristle; the dimensions and/or perimeter configuration of the package used to contain the small pre-moistened disposable towel; the thickness of the packaging unit material used to house both the disposable towel and the toothbrush; the composition of package materials used for the disposable towel to keep it moistened and sanitary until use; the configuration of the perforation or other means used to facilitate separation between adjacent packaging units; the configuration of the means used to facilitate the opening of each packaging unit by a user; and the positioning of the heat sealed compartment divider within the packaging unit when one is used for separation of the disposable towel from the toothbrush bristles during pre-use storage, and obvious variations other than those shown and described herein, may also be incorporated into the present invention. Thus, the scope of the present invention should be determined by the appended claims and their legal equivalents, rather than the examples given.